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Could i have MGD even if my eyelids LOOK normal? This is driving me crazy - not knowing. My symptoms are dry eyes, stinging, buring sensation and inside the lower eyelids is where i seem to feel the most dry. I sometimes feel my eyelids prickly aswell.
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I think so, but a Dr. is the one who could confirm. My eyelids always looked perfectly normal to me and I definitely have it... Of course, I don't have good vision at all so maybe I was missing some of the signs... -
Can an Optician diagnose this or would it have to be an Eye Specialist?Comment
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Hi acarol
My optician/optometrist diagnosed my MGD - he actually demonstrated to me that the glands were blocked with digital photography He stained my eyes then phtographed them and magnified the photos until the tiny glands were visible and ,cause of the dye you could actually see the blockages
It only cost £35 to have that done
By the same method he was able to tell me i had "holes" in the tear filmComment
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Hi,
I agree with the post above.
Anyone who looks through a lens should be able to see, but make sure you ask the questions, otherwise they may not look for MGD or ocular rosacea or all those other things.
I was told I had MGD on Friday, three months after my Lasik surgury, and two months after asking that same surgeon if I could have MGD...his responce..."oh we all have that to some extent or another".
I know in Dr. L's book that he talks about being able to see the blockages adn squezing to see them unblock but I can't see a thing wrong with mine. I have no flakiness etc with the eye lashes or eye lids. When I said this to him my new Dr. said that he can very clearly see them blocked by looking through his lens.
As I said in a previous post I only had Lasik done on one eye, and only that eye is causing pain, though I have MGD in both eyes. This goes to show it is possible to have it without experiencing symptoms, but then something sets it off.
Keep searching for an answer. I know you are in Ireland but what you really need to do when making appointments is to ask if the optician/eye specialist has experience with "dry eye". "Dry eye" covers many things and you need someone to help you work out what type you have so you can get help with your treatment.
I know how frustrating this is. What about going to your regular Dr. and asking for a referral to a dry eye specialist. I know in Ireland you will have to wait up to a year for this appointment but maybe if you can get his name you could ring his office and see if they can give you the name of a private optician or eye surgeon you could go see.
Keep well.Comment
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Oh...and when my whold eye ball isn't hurting it is inside the lower inner eyelids that I feel the pain.
B.Comment
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Thanks for replying - this problem is driving me around the bend.
I've never had that test where they photograph the eyes, the last Doctor i went to just looked at my eyes with the slit lamp and said that the eyelids seem to be the problem - he didn't do any further tests, he prescribed me ointment to use at night but i actually feel worse - dryer and more irriated.
I don't think there even IS a 'Dry Eye Specialist' in Ireland. Just don't know where to turn next.Comment
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Acarol - This may be cost prohibitive for you, but have you thought of making a trip to the U.S. to see Dr. Latkany? He might at least be able to get you started with a diagnosis.Comment
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No i wouldn't be able to afford that unfortunately.
I would love to go to New York of course and i've always wanted to go there - just didn't think it would be for health reasons!Comment
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Acarole
You mention that you cant find a good ophthalmologist (eye specialist ) in Ireland
I have in my hand a printout that i kept from a girl from Ireland who posted here July 07 who gave the name of a doctor she found helpful
If you look up "Nicole" in the members list and find her post on "how my dry eye pain was sorted " -she gives the name and address and telephone number of a doctor she found helped her - based in Dublin
If you cant find the post let me know and i have details in this print out
I just hope he is still there - a year later
StellaComment
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I was thinking a bit more about this last night.
Last week I was told I had MGD in both eyes, but the pain is coming from the lasik eye only
I suspected I had MGD from the posts I was reading from other MGD sufferers, even though my lids looked normal. Howver i think I was confused about what "noraml" means.
i was thinking the lids meant the lash line, rather then the whole lid. My lasik eye looked tired, esp. in the morning as the crease area ws droppy. I put down to pain, I now realise this was probably swelling of the lid.
Second my eye ball was sore to touch, and I thought this was from the Lasik...though I now realise it was probably my lid that was sore to touch.
Don't know if this will point you in the right direction.
And yes a GP can prescribe it. It is used for those with rosceac and I believe acne so ylu should be fine getting it. I know it is horible take anti biotics for a long lenght of time, but I am willing to do this for three months to give my eye a break to help it recover form the Lasik and erosions.
Sometimes the end does justify the means, and if you get a positve result then you may be one step closer to knowing what is going on.Comment
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oh and you might want to do a little research on the oinmtent. There are alot of posts her, and I believe something in the mdical section that says that ointment can make the eye worse. Something to do with preventing the production of tears.
How about trying a night time gel instead.Comment
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Originally posted by bernmee View Post
Thanks for your reply - can ointment really prevent the production of tears? I'm only using it now along the lids - i put a little bit on a cotton bud and wipe along the lids - i try not to actually get it into my eyes. The first night i was bit stupid using it and put it all along my lids which got into my eyes and made things worse. Its just so hard to know what we should or should not be using.Comment
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Below I have pasted from a scetion on this site on ointments...from teh products page hat you can find if you scroll donw the end of the home page. Many people on this site seem to agree with this. I was using Muro 128 ointment in the eye..maybe the ointment you have on your lid is a different type of ointment. Are you applying it to the lash line or the whole ld.
I'm interested to know what drops/gels you are using. I had major success with Genteal gel for severe dry eye. I got the name of it from this site when I posted that it was how I faired through the night that helped predict what type of day I was going to have. Maybe you could give it a go if it is available in Ireland. I am from Dublin and have brothers returning to Duiblin at the start and the middle of August. I would be more then happy to send home anything you want from teh States if you can't get them in Ireland.
Do you have punctal plugs..I have top and bottom and they seem to be a strting point for most people on this site.
I really think it is important though to get a good diagnosis. I know how frustrating this is but when you get it things will be different. I stayed with my Lasik surgeon and got No help for three months. It was only through tips I got from others on this site I was able to go back to him and ask for such thkings as plugs etc. i have switched dr's and found out I have MGD, makes me think my original surgeon knew this but didn't want to acknowledge it, as this is a big no no for Lasik...but it didn't stop him.
Get the names of as many conditions as you can and ask specific questions...ie, do I have Blepheritis, MGD, ocular roseacea etc, what is my Tear Break up Time, get them to perform the Schirmers test, get them to look at your glands and see if they are blocked. Bring a notepad with your questions written down and fill in the answers as you go along. Date these answers and move onto the next Dr. if you must. i have a notepad and I was able to pull t out at my appointment with my new Dr. and show him what had, or had not, been done, and what questions I had asked and what the replies had been. I saw it as my weapon against my lasik surgeon as he was blinding me with science and I was leaving the cahir with no answers.
You may need to point the Dr. in the right direction incase they are overlooking something. I would never have spoken about a Dr. like this before but I have learned after three months that you really have to take control of your own health. A trusting attitude doesn't always get you what you want.
below is teh section on ointmetn. I seem to have lost my typing skilss with this dry eye thing
OINTMENTS
EDITOR'S NOTE: At The Dry Eye Zone we are not fond of ointments and recommend caution in any long-term use of them. Think of the tear film as a delivery vehicle for important nutrients to the entire cornea and conjunctiva. Grease applied directly to those surfaces is going to interfere with tears reaching them, so our concern (bear in mind this is coming from laypeople not medical professionals) is that while helping to temporarily protect the cornea it may be making it more vulnerable. In our community forums we get frequent reports of worsening of symptoms with long-term use of ointments. So please discuss with your doctor other options too. Check out our night dry eye page for suggestions about other ways to protect eyes at night.
PRODUCT ACTIVE INGREDIENT(S) PRESERVATIVE APPRX. COST
Advanced Eye Relief Night Time (fmrly. Moisture Eyes PM) White petrolatum, mineral oil None (PF) $10.59 (0.12 oz)
Genteal PM White petrolatum, mineral oil None (PF) $8.99 (0.12 oz)
Lacrilube White petrolatum, mineral oil Chlorobutanol $18.89 (0.25 oz)
Refresh PM White petrolatum, mineral oil None (PF) $10.99 (0.12 oz)
Tears Naturale PM White petrolatum, mineral oil None (PF) $10.19 (0.12 oz)Comment
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